The First Race Bike

After completing his first training session with British Superbike School, we decided it was time for Evan to have a bike of his own.

What followed were countless late nights searching listings with Dad, trying to find the right machine to begin the next chapter. Eventually, we found what looked like the perfect first step into the world of bigger bikes — a 2005 Kawasaki ZX6RR.

Or so we thought.

Being completely new to motorcycles and racing, this marked the beginning of a very steep learning curve for all of us. Alongside the ZX6RR came a brand new Debon box trailer, and suddenly everything started to feel very real. Track days, paddocks, tyre warmers, fuel cans, tools — we were diving headfirst into a world we knew almost nothing about.

To help Evan build confidence before his ACU licence assessment, we booked time at Curborough Sprint Course, our local training ground. At this point, Evan had spent only around seven and a quarter hours of his life on a motorbike — a number we would soon begin tracking carefully as the journey unfolded.

Then came the first major reality check.

We discovered that under ACU regulations, Evan was actually too young to ride a 600cc machine competitively. So, after all the excitement surrounding the ZX6RR, it was back onto the trusty KTM 390 for another session.

At the time, it felt frustrating. Looking back now, it was simply our first proper lesson in racing.

Every step in this sport teaches you something. Sometimes it’s about riding. Sometimes it’s about regulations, logistics, costs, or mistakes you never saw coming. We were beginning to realise just how steep the climb really was, and how much we still had to learn.

Before long, we’d become very familiar with the phrase:

“That’s racing.”

The universal answer to every unexpected setback, broken part, rule change, crash, mechanical issue, or last-minute problem.

Little did we know just how often we’d hear it. 🏁💛